Winbledon champ Ivanisevic to undergo surgery, likely miss 2002 tourney

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Posted 7:52AM on Tuesday, May 7, 2002

ZAGREB, CROATIA - Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic isn't likely to defend the title next month. He has decided to undergo an operation of his shoulder that has been bothering him for years, Croatian media reported Tuesday. The 30-year-old left-hander reportedly made the decision after pains in his serving shoulder forced him to cut short Monday's training in Split, his hometown in southern Croatia. ``The pain was excruciating,'' Ivanisevic told Sportske Novosti daily. ``With such a shoulder, there is no point going to Wimbledon.'' Other newspapers also said Ivanisevic, ranked No. 16 in the world, already canceled his entry in the ATP World Team Championship in Dusseldorf, Germany from May 20, and is about to notify Wimbledon authorities that he won't be there when it starts June 24. Ivanisevic beat Pat Rafter in last year's Wimbledon final to become the first wild card to win a Grand Slam singles title. Doctors recently determined that much of the cartilage and muscle tissue in Ivanisevic's left shoulder was badly affected by more than a decade of professional tennis. Ivanisevic has played only once in the last six weeks, a doubles match for Croatia in a Davis Cup quarterfinal tie a month ago. He has apparently decided to undergo surgery to make himself fit for one or two more seasons. The date and venue of the operation have yet to be announced.